As AMERICAblog's John Aravosis reports,
Del. Sam Arora has stated that he does
not intend to vote for Maryland's marriage equality bill, despite the fact that he co-sponsored it.

This reversal comes as a major
shock to progressives and the LGBT community; during his campaign, he was a
proponent of marriage equality and even filled out an Equality Maryland
questionnaire, signaling his support for same-sex marriage. Arora's betrayal puts Maryland's marriage
equality bill in serious jeopardy. The bill, HB 175, remains several
votes short of the 71 needed for final passage. If Arora decides to cave to
anti-gay political pressure, the prospects of marriage equality in Maryland dim
significantly.

Campaign donor Karl Frisch isn't
taking this this lying down. AMERICAblog has posted an open letter Karl wrote
to Arora demanding his money back, and he's asking other donors to do the same.

As
Karl told Equality Matters today: "It makes me sick. I supported Sam
because he was a friend and a staunch supporter of LGBT equality -- including
marriage equality. I refuse to fund any candidate who would deny me full legal
equality and simple human dignity. A real friend will tell you when you are
wrong. Sam couldn't be more wrong. I've asked for a refund of my contribution
and hope others will do the same." [disclosure:
Karl worked for Media Matters from September 2006 to January 2011]

I would like a refund of my $100 donation. I am sickened that you will be voting against marriage equality and can't support someone who would betray me, my gay friends that also supported you, and the broader LGBT community. You have told mutual friends of ours that you will be voting against marriage equality and I just can't support that -- not now, in the future, or in the past. You can mail a check made payable to "Karl Frisch" to:

In 2010, I had three friends running for state legislature -- one in Vermont
and two in Maryland. I don't typically donate much money directly to candidates
but I was excited at the prospect of seeing my progressive friends elected to
their respective state legislatures, so I chipped in what I could. In the end,
two of my three friends were victorious.

It is now March 2011, and the Maryland House of Delegates is considering
legislation, passed narrowly by the State Senate, that would bring marriage
equality to the Old Line State.

My friend Sam Arora campaigned in 2010 as an advocate for marriage equality in
Maryland, and after he was elected he even co-sponsored legislation to that
end.

My how things have changed.

As Joe and John noted on AMERICAblog yesterday, Sam now refuses to say whether
or not he will vote for final passage of the bill and will only commit to
voting it out of committee.

Sam has posted to his Facebook wall that he wants people to continue sharing
their thoughts with him on this important issue. That request is
disingenuous at best.

This morning, I spoke with a mutual friend who spoke yesterday to Sam about his
pending vote. According to that friend, Sam told him point blank that he
would be voting against marriage equality because he is born again and doesn't
want to redefine marriage.

I am sickened and I want my money back.

It may only be $100, but I refuse to support anyone who would align themselves with
hate groups -- yes, the national hate groups are in Maryland in force, and Sam
is now aligning himself with them -- especially after soliciting my support and
the support of my community only months ago.

I call on everyone who donated even a penny to Sam's campaign last year to join
me in contacting his campaign and asking for their money back.

Sam may be free to lie to his friends and supporters, but we don't have to
rubberstamp his betrayal.

The first step is getting our money back. The second step is giving that money
to a progressive pro-marriage equality Democrat who will challenge Sam in his
2012 primary.

It's obviously sad when a friend disappoints you. But sadness cannot and should
not lead to inaction. True friendship means telling a friend they're wrong when
they're wrong. And Sam couldn't be more wrong.

Karl Frisch
Washington, DC

UPDATE: As AMERICAblog reports, Sam Arora has recently deleted a month-old post from his Twitter account in which he wrote: